Stories of George Washington

There’s a reason we celebrate George Washington every February. He was one of the greatest men to ever live in any age. Teach your kids some stories of George Washington so they understand why he was so special.

Start with this brief biography of George Washington. One of my favorite stories is of Washington addressing his troops after the Revolutionary War was over. They urged him to march on Philadelphia and the congress in order to take control of the country, which in an incredible moment he refused to do.

Here is a printable story book for young kids about how George was honest when it was difficult to be.

Here is the story of the horse in more detail:

There is a story told of George Washington’s boyhood – unfortunately there are not many stories – which is to the point. His father had taken a great deal of pride in his blooded horses, and his mother afterward took pains to keep the stock pure. She had several young horses that had not yet been broken, and one of them in particular, a sorrel, was extremely spirited. No one had been able to do anything with it, and it was pronounced thoroughly vicious as people are apt to pronounce horses which they have not learned to master. George was determined to ride this colt, and told his companions that if they would help him catch it, he would ride and tame it. Early in the morning they set out for the pasture, where the boys managed to surround the sorrel, and then to put a bit into its mouth. Washington sprang upon its back, the boys dropped the bridle, and away flew the angry animal. Its rider at once began to command. The horse resisted, backing about the field, rearing and plunging. The boys became thoroughly alarmed, but Washington kept his seat, never once losing his self-control or his mastery of the colt. The struggle was a sharp one; when suddenly, as if determined to rid itself of its rider, the creature leaped into the air with a tremendous bound. It was its last. The violence burst a blood-vessel, and the noble horse fell dead. Before the boys could sufficiently recover to consider how they should extricate themselves from the scrape, they were called to breakfast; and the mistress of the house, knowing that they had been in the fields, began to ask after her stock. “Pray, young gentlemen,” said she, “have you seen my blooded colts in your rambles? I hope they are well taken care of. My favorite, I am told, is as large as his sire.” The boys looked at one another, and no one liked to speak. Of course the mother repeated her question. “The sorrel is dead, madam,” said her son, “I killed him.” And then he told the whole story. They say that his mother flushed with anger, as her son often used to, and then, like him, controlled herself, and presently said, quietly: “It is well; but while I regret the loss of my favorite, I rejoice in my son who always speaks the truth.”

The story of the horse is from George Washington by Horace E. Scudder. He wrote the book for children in 1889 and you may be interested in it if you love American history and America and want to pass that on to your kids. You can read the book online here.

The Parson Weems fable of young George chopping down the cherry tree.

The story of the Cherry Tree, which some say never actually happened, was written down by Parson Weems in 1800 in a book called The Life of Washington. You can see and read the book online here. And here is the excerpt of just the Cherry Tree Story.

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Author: Layers of Learning

We are two sisters and homeschool moms who created a family-style, hands-on and engaging curriculum for history, geography, science, and the arts. We sell fantastic unit studies that will transform your homeschool.